


Holtz to the Future Part II

by lesbianseagull



Series: Holtz to the Future Trilogy [2]
Category: Back to the Future (Movies), Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: Angst, Crossover, F/F, Ghost Possession, Love Triangle, Teacher/Student, doc holtz, molly mcfly, time traveling lesbian ghostbusting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-21
Updated: 2016-10-30
Packaged: 2018-08-16 11:10:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 12,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8100202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lesbianseagull/pseuds/lesbianseagull
Summary: Well here it is, internet. I tried to stop it from coming out of me but I couldn't. The non-awaited sequel to my Ghostbusters/Back to the Future lesbian crossover fic. Within, you will find Doc Holtz, Molly McFly, Erin Gilbert, time traveling and ghostbusting. And fucking, there's some fucking in here too.





	1. Start Spreading The News, I'm Leaving Today

**Author's Note:**

> The first fic can be found [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/7564369/chapters/17207527), it's not absolutely necessary that you read it before reading this, but I do suggest it. Because I wrote it. And I like it. :)
> 
> I'd also like to add that we're going back in time here before we go forward and then back again and forward again because this is a BTTF time fuckery fic and I deliver on my promises yall.

A few months had passed since Rowan had unleashed supernatural havoc on New York City.

Jillian Holtzmann had not anticipated that the next supernatural enemy she would face would be her own girlfriend and fellow Ghostbuster, the brilliant Dr. Erin Gilbert.

Even less had Holtz anticipated any kind of romance between her and Erin... she had hoped. And that was usually all that she did. Hoped. Flirted. Got turned down.

Erin though... Erin surprised her. In so many ways.

They were in the firehouse when Erin had surprised Holtz by flirting back. Patty and Abby were downstairs and Erin was checking out Holtz's lab on the second floor.

Erin was inspecting a newer and smaller version of Holtz's ghost trap that was lying on the edge of Holtz's workspace. "So this thing still has a few kinks to be worked out, huh?" she asked as she examined it carefully.

"Yep," replied Holtz, busily soldering another project she was working on. "I mean I like kinky but not when it causes serious and lasting harm." She said this without looking up from her work. There was a time when she would've accompanied this statement with a suggestive wink directed at Erin, but that time had passed and Holtz had accepted that Erin did not feel the same towards her. So she ditched the winks... but not the innuendo. Never the innuendo.

"You like kinky?"

It took Holtz a few seconds to process what Erin had just said. When she did, she stopped soldering. She lifted her gaze carefully to Erin's.

Erin was staring at her. Afraid... and hopeful.

And Holtz realized that the door hadn't quite been shut in her face. It had been left open a crack. She saw light shining in through that crack, and she grinned wide.

Holtz replied with something that went far beyond the suggestiveness of her past flirting, Erin turned bright red and fled from the lab, and Holtz determined that subtlety was the way to go.

Subtlety eventually worked. They were on a call, Erin had just captured a ghost with one of Holtz's new traps, Holtz had beamed proudly at her and brushed a stray strand of Erin's hair from her face, and suddenly Erin's mouth was pressed to hers. Holtz's eyes went wide with shock, taking in both Abby's and Patty's equally shocked stares, before closing with bliss as she returned Erin's kiss.

And that would have been wonderful if things didn't immediately go to shit afterwards.

They returned to the firehouse, Abby had yawned a goodnight before trudging off towards her bed, Patty had winked slyly and grinned at Holtz and Erin before retreating as well, Holtz had turned towards Erin and Erin had turned and fled back to her own room.

Holtz stared after her in utter confusion. She followed the older woman, stood in front of the closed bedroom door, hesitated before knocking on it and softly calling Erin's name. Erin shouted for her to go away. Glumly, Holtz did as Erin requested.

The next day Erin acted like nothing at all had happened between her and Holtz. She smiled in greeting. Smiled just a little too big.

That night she attacked Holtz.

Holtz was working furiously in her lab, trying to kill her emotions with fire, when she suddenly felt fingers sliding into her hair. She turned around to find Erin standing above her, and before she could react in any way Erin was sitting on top of her and kissing her hungrily.

Holtz felt all of her fury dissipate in that kiss. She kissed Erin back with even more hunger, pulling her as close as she could get, sliding her hands up Erin's back underneath her shirt.

And suddenly she registered the pressure of Erin's hands around her neck, and she felt them tightening, tightening, until Holtz gasped for breath. Her hands scrabbled at Erin's back, scratched and clawed at her, tried to shove her away but Erin wouldn't budge.

Holtz's hand flailed out as her head pounded and her vision began to blur. She tried to cry out but could only manage a choking cough...

Her hand landed on one of her proton pistols that was lying on her workbench and she fired it, blasting a hole through the wall of the firehouse.

Seconds later both Patty and Abby came running upstairs and Erin was wrenched away from Holtz, screaming in fury. Holtz coughed and fell to the floor, looking up at Erin with bloodshot eyes, staring as Erin frothed at the mouth and cursed at Patty and demanded that the taller woman let her go. Holtz did not recognize the woman that Patty was restraining.

Abby stared at Erin in horror as well. "What happened," she asked breathlessly.

"She... kissed me," croaked Holtz. "And... tried to... strangle me..."

The horror on Abby's face grew. She swallowed hard, looked into Erin's eyes. "Who... who are you?"

Erin sneered at her. "Don't talk to me that way, little girl, I'll rip your fucking tongue out."

"Oh shit," muttered Patty, "we got a ghost up in here."

"Take her to the cell," said Abby, referring to the ghost holding cell they had built within the firehouse, a padded chamber with walls that ghosts could not pass through. She and Holtz watched Patty drag Erin away and Abby started to cry.

"Holtz," Abby whispered, voice thick with pain. "You... I'm..."

Holtz knew what Abby was trying to say. She lifted her hand to her bruised throat and remembered Abby's fingers closing around it when Abby had been possessed by Rowan.

Holtz stood up and pulled Abby into a hug. "It's okay," she murmured weakly into Abby's ear, tears flowing down her face as she felt Abby's tears spilling onto her shoulder. They clutched tightly at each other and cried together for several moments.

In the days that followed and through their interrogation of Erin, they learned who the ghost was that had tried to make Erin kill Holtz. And they learned why it had happened.

It was the ghost of the old woman who had haunted Erin as a child. She wouldn't give her name, but she made her intent clear: she would not allow Erin to be loved, because the old woman had never been loved, and if Erin refused to obey her, she would kill whoever tried to love Erin.

Everything became clear to Holtz... Erin's lack of a love life, Erin's shunning of her the night before... it was against the rules for Erin to love.

They found out why this woman became attached to Erin in the first place; on Halloween of 1985, when Erin was eight years old, she had been convinced by her friends to take part in vandalizing the woman's home, which was next door to her own. When the old woman had burst out of her house, Erin's friends had long since vanished, leaving Erin alone to bear the full weight of the old woman's wrath.

The woman had been found dead in her house a short time later, and not long after that, her haunting of Erin began. But little did anyone know that it was no mere haunting... the old woman attached herself permanently to Erin, determined to make Erin live as miserably as she had.

Holtz wanted nothing more than to take Erin in her arms and comfort her... but she knew that was not possible. Not while this ghost was residing within Erin.

They tried exorcism. Exorcist after exorcist. And met with no luck. Holtz tried every possible option that she could find to save Erin from this woman's ghost...

She eventually had to face the horrible truth... that at this point, the only way to free Erin from this woman's grasp would be to destroy the vessel that contained the ghost.

Erin would have to die.

Holtz looked at Erin through the little window of the holding cell. Erin looked back up at her, eyes red with tears, pleading with Holtz to let her out.

Holtz closed her eyes, as they filled with horrible burning tears, and she turned and walked out of the firehouse.

And she resolved to never walk back into it.


	2. All The Leaves Are Brown, And The Sky Is Gray

Molly McFly waited anxiously in the empty parking lot of the Twin Pines Mall. She checked her phone. It was past one o'clock in the morning. It was dark except for the streetlamps shimmering in the distance. She was beginning to doubt the wisdom of coming to this parking lot at this hour.

But Holtz's sudden phone call after months passed in her absence could have asked Molly to jump off a cliff and Molly would have probably done it.

Molly wore a red flannel shirt unbuttoned over a white tank top, along with jeans and ancient white running shoes. Her long dark hair was a frizzy cloud around her face. She'd tried to tame it, but no luck.

She was shaking, but not from the cold. She nervously kicked her skateboard back and forth with one foot.

Suddenly leaves began to blow around her feet, gently at first and then increasingly fast, and Molly's hair began to blow in the wind as well. She wrapped her arms around her chest, curling into herself. And then she heard something above her and she raised her dark eyes to the sky.

Her mouth fell open... and then stretched in a wide grin.

The DeLorean hovered high above her, glinting in the night sky, its wheels turned flat and expelling air like jets. It sank lower, circling down around Molly before landing in front of her, the wheels righting themselves as it touched down.

The gullwing door lifted open.

A shiny black biker boot stepped out. It was followed by a leg clad in acid-washed jeans that were ripped at the knee... Molly's eyes raised up over a utility belt loaded with engineering tools, a wide stripe of pale stomach under a white shirt torn off at the midriff, a black leather jacket and fingerless gloves... and finally Molly's eyes took in the familiar Screw You chain around the other woman's neck, the familiar yellow goggles and the blonde mad scientist hair that rose towards the sky.

Holtz lifted the goggles onto her forehead, her light blue eyes twinkling at Molly. She dipped her head and put her hand up as if to tip an invisible hat to the younger woman. "Evening, Miss Molly," she said in a sultry voice, a smile pulling up one corner of her mouth.

Molly rushed forward and pinned her against the car, attacking her former professor's mouth with a hungry kiss. Holtz was motionless for a second, stunned by the sudden move, and then she began to kiss Molly with equal fervor.

Molly pulled away, panting hard. "God _damn_ I missed you, Doc," she whispered. She leaned back in to continue kissing Holtz but Holtz leaned back laughing.

"Easy girlie, we got some things to talk about first," she said, brushing Molly's hair away from her face. Molly smiled and leaned into the touch.

Then she stepped back and looked wonderingly at the time machine. "You made it _fly_."

"I most certainly did," said Holtz with a massive grin. "And time travel no longer requires plutonium." She walked towards the back of the time machine and patted what looked like an old Mr. Coffee with the word 'coffee' crossed out and the word 'fusion' written above it. "Meet Mr. Fusion. He converts matter into energy via cold fusion."

Molly's jaw nearly dropped to the ground. "COLD FUSION. Are you fucking with me, Holtz?"

"In this instance, I am not fucking with you."

Molly shook her head in amazement. "The evidence is adding up against you being human." She looked back at Holtz, just drinking in the sight of her for a moment. "Where... _when_ have you been? Did you go back to 1985 and-"

She's cut off by a finger pressed against her lips. "Shhh. Sit, my child, and I will answer all of your questions."

"I'm twenty," said Molly with her lips pressed shut.

"That is unimportant."

"There's nowhere to sit."

"That is also unimportant."


	3. Trick Or Treat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goin back in time again. Although technically this is the future for us in 2016. Because this is taking place in like 2018 or so. It's like Doc and Marty going back to the present of 1985 when it's actually 1990 for the rest of the world. But more importantly you might ask yourself, what does that have to do with this case? Nothing. Ladies and gentleladies, it has nothing to do with this case. TIME FUCKERY YALL *slams fist on table*

Holtz had watched Molly disappear into her house and had simply stared at the door Molly had disappeared through for several minutes. Then she realized she was parked outside her student's house staring at it like a creep, and she carefully tucked away the note Molly had given her before driving off.

She realized as she was driving that she didn't even have the plutonium required for going back in time... she and Molly had only taken enough for the trip back to the present. And there was no way Holtz was going to try stealing it from another terrorist group. She already had one terrorist group trying to kill her, she didn't need any more.

She considered just turning back around, pulling Molly back into the DeLorean and just driving as far away as they could go. And she cringed at her selfishness. Molly deserved better...

So Holtz drove. She parked as close to her apartment building as she dared, aware that terrorists had tracked her down to the college where she worked and that meant they likely knew where she lived.

At least it was nighttime and thus less easy to spot her. She very carefully made her way to her apartment, making sure that no one else was in sight. Once inside she stuffed a trash bag full of clothes, grabbed as many tools and parts as she could carry and with all of that in tow she bid farewell to her apartment and quickly made her way back to the time machine.

She paused for a moment, leaning on the steering wheel, cradling her head in her hands. With not a clue where she should go next. That same feeling she'd had when she'd left New York...

And she lifted her head back up, took a deep breath and on she went.

She drove to the house she had grown up in. It was abandoned now, almost in ruins, being steadily encroached on by the fast food joints that had sprung up around it since Holtz and her mother had left.

Holtz surveyed the derelict building that stood in Burger King's shadow and decided that it would serve her needs well enough. She parked in the alley behind the house, kicked open the back door and began to set up shop inside.

She needed to figure out a way around the plutonium issue. And she also needed to protect this place and the time machine from any intruders, which she figured was the more pressing issue so she took care of that one first, setting up an alarm system around the house and a defense system in the time machine (and also throwing a sheet over it for good measure). And then she went dumpster diving.

As she dissected an old Mr. Coffee she pondered her life since New York, something she hadn't really allowed herself to do for the past two years. She thought about Erin. She thought about Molly.

She wondered if she should just leave the past as it was... Erin would still be possessed and unable to have a relationship with anybody but there were worse things that could happen. Holtz had no idea what the outcome of changing the past would be. She, of course, hoped for the positive, but was aware of the negative.

And what would it mean for her, if she saved Erin... would she go back to Erin? What about Molly?

She remembered how she used to not care about these things and she let out a cry of frustration. She pushed the emotions away. She resolved to finish what she'd started. Holtz had built a time machine for a purpose, and goddammit, she was going to fulfill that purpose.

It took her a good month or so to perfect Mr. Fusion. She also added flying capability, which she figured was a much safer method of traveling through time after the car accident she'd gotten herself and Molly into before. Well, safer in that there wouldn't be any other cars around. Not exactly safer in being separated from the ground.

Fuck it, Holtz figured. If you're gonna travel through time, do it with some style.

After testing the flying and feeding Mr. Fusion some trash, she flew back into 1985 and headed for Michigan, which was where she would find an eight-year-old Erin.

Erin was dressed as a ghost for Halloween. Holtz grinned at this highly appropriate choice of costume.

She watched little Erin run down the street with her friends and wondered how exactly she was going to do what she had come here to do. Should she just walk up to little Erin and tell her not to trash the old lady's house next door? Should she tell Erin's parents to stop their daughter from trashing said old lady's house?

Should Holtz join in trashing the old lady's house because the woman was a hateful bitch who spent her afterlife terrorizing a little girl all the way into the girl's adulthood and trying to kill the people the girl tried to have a relationship with?

Holtz _could_ just pull Erin away before the old woman came out of her house. But no. The logical side of her would not let this happen. She had to stop Erin from ruining her own life.

Holtz didn't want to freak little Erin out in any way, nor did she want to get Erin into any trouble, so she settled on knocking on Erin's parents' door and telling them she'd seen their daughter's friends messing up some of the other houses in the neighborhood and suggested that they keep their daughter away from these kids.

She stayed and hid in some nearby bushes to make sure that Erin's parents separated their daughter from those kids, and as she watched Erin continue trick-or-treating with her parents she smiled warmly.

And underneath the happiness, there was an uneasiness... Holtz wasn't sure why it was there.

Holtz returned to the DeLorean and wondered whether she should return to present day New York and find Erin. She wanted so badly to see Erin again, to see that Erin was safe and free of that woman's ghost.

But she had to go back to Hill Valley. If not to stay, then to figure out where exactly it was that she wanted to be. To see Molly once again...


	4. Behind The Wheel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're back in the present. Which is actually the future. Or the past, if you're reading this after 2018. Sup future people? Man 2016 was a crazy year huh, that whole thing with Donald Trump getting killed by a pack of wild boars... at least the year went out on a high note.

The DeLorean lurched into the air and Molly laughed giddily, Holtz grinning at her from the passenger seat. And then Molly tossed her head back and let out a shout of pure joy as they rocketed into the sky.

After a few minutes of flying around just for the sake of flying, Molly flew them in the direction of Holtz's house, landing them somewhat roughly in the alley behind it.

"Shit, gotta get the landing down better," muttered Molly. She offered Holtz an apologetic smile. "Hope I didn't hurt your baby."

Holtz leaned in towards her, her eyes flickering over Molly's face. "You didn't," she murmured with her eyes on Molly's mouth, and Molly closed the distance between them.

As they kissed Molly's hand trailed down from Holtz's face to her neck and lower... Holtz pulled back when Molly's fingers passed the collar of her shirt. Then she got out of the car, ignoring Molly's protests, walked around to the driver's side, opened the door and slid her arms under Molly's arms and legs, lifting her out of the car.

"Holy shit, Holtz," said Molly half in fear and half in awe, clutching onto Holtz. "This is... you will probably break your back doing this. Unless you really aren't human."

"I've carried a nuclear weapon on my back that was way heavier," replied Holtz with a reassuring grin as she carried Molly to the door. She kicked open the door once again and carried Molly inside.

She set Molly down and Molly looked around at what seemed like more of a lab than a living space. Something caught Molly's attention and she walked over to it, frowning as she picked up a piece of paper. "Is this a design for a skateboard?"

"Yup."

Molly studied the design more closely and her eyes slowly widened. "Holtz... is this... a flying skateboard?"

"It is indeed," said Holtz against the back of Molly's neck and Molly could feel her grinning. Molly shivered at the contact, warmth spreading out from where Holtz's lips touched her skin. She set the paper back down.

"That's another point against your humanity," said Molly softly, leaning back into Holtz's touch.

"Want me to prove my humanity to you?" murmured Holtz, her teeth scraping gently at Molly's skin as a hand snaked around Molly's waist and started to slide into the front of her jeans.

Molly turned to face Holtz. Her hand rose to caress the side of Holtz's face and both women leaned in to find one another's lips in a soft kiss.

Holtz's fingers returned to the front of Molly's jeans but Molly pulled them away, grinning with Holtz's bottom lip between her teeth. "Do you have a bed in here or do you just sleep on top of your work?" Holtz took her hand and pulled her into a room that contained more blueprints and machinery and also a bed.

Molly pushed her down onto it, making Holtz's eyes widen. Molly straddled Holtz on the bed and Holtz grinned lasciviously.

Molly's fingers drifted into Holtz's hair and she gave Holtz a puzzled smile. "There's a lot more going on here than meets the eye isn't there," Molly said with a hint of a laugh in her voice, fingers combing through the hair that Holtz didn't have painstakingly pinned to her head. "Is this where you store your genius?"

"Don't fuck with my hair," warned Holtz, pulling Molly's hand down and nipping at her fingers. "It's an ongoing experiment." She then rolled Molly onto her back and laid on top of her, licking at Molly's lips before plunging her tongue between them. Molly moaned and Holtz started sliding her hand up under Molly's shirt.

Molly pulled it away and flipped them back over, pinning Holtz's wrists to the bed. Holtz groaned in frustration. "You are _killing_ me, woman."

Molly leaned down over her. "Payback, Doc," said Molly with a smirk. "You left me for months, you're not getting off that easy."

Keeping Holtz's wrists pinned down, she leaned in towards Holtz's neck and licked at it, remembering how she'd done this the last time they'd seen each other and how Holtz had responded so deliciously to it. This time was even better; Holtz let out a whimper, her body arching up against Molly's, and Molly smirked once again. She licked at Holtz's earlobe and tugged it gently between her teeth, drawing a soft groan out of the older woman.

Molly trailed kisses down the soft pale column of Holtz's neck, biting at the junction of her neck and shoulder and making her shudder with pleasure. Molly looked down at Holtz's body beneath hers, suddenly apprehensive... Holtz's hands laced into hers, bringing Molly's eyes back up to Holtz's and finding warmth in them.

"You don't have to do anything you're not comfortable doing," said Holtz softly, squeezing Molly's hands in hers. She brought one of Molly's hands up to her mouth and kissed it, smiling up at the younger woman. "I'm yours, however you want me."

The words, once they'd passed Holtz's lips, made Holtz somewhat nervous at what she'd implied with them, but the smile that brightened Molly's face banished any nervousness that Holtz had.

Molly lifted Holtz's hand to her own mouth and kissed it as well, then leaned down and planted a kiss over Holtz's heart through the fabric of her shirt. Holtz's hand slid into Molly's hair, and Molly sank lower, brushing her lips against the fabric covering Holtz's nipple. Holtz's eyelids fluttered shut as Molly licked at her nipple through her shirt and she moaned quietly.

Molly took this as encouragement and she lifted Holtz's shirt, licking at Holtz again before sucking Holtz's nipple into her mouth. Holtz's fingers coiled in Molly's hair and she moaned loudly.

Molly kissed down Holtz's body, deep, passionate kisses, savoring the taste and the feel of her skin. When she came to Holtz's tool belt she slid her fingers along it, trying to find a way to remove it but she couldn't and she let out a frustrated groan.

"Dammit, Holtz, why must you clothe yourself in such a complicated manner?"

Holtz laughed and unclasped her belt, lifting her hips and allowing Molly to pull it off. Molly also opened Holtz's jeans and slid those down off of her as well, sitting back to pull Holtz's boots off before pulling off her jeans.

Molly's gaze traveled over Holtz's naked lower half before raising to meet Holtz's gaze once more. "Are you sure you want this," asked Holtz, giving Molly one last chance to back out.

A smirk pulled up one corner of Molly's mouth. "Fuck that pillow princess shit, I ain't play like that," she answered, pushing Holtz's legs apart and leaning down to bite the inside of Holtz's thigh.

Holtz's head fell back with a breathless laugh. "You know your dyke lingo."

Molly grinned and sank her teeth deeply into Holtz's skin, pulling back to admire the bite mark she'd left before kissing higher, higher up the inside of Holtz's thigh, feeling nervousness swirling within her, mixing with the lust that grew with each soft moan that Holtz released.

Molly had never done this before, but having the same equipment and having liberally explored said equipment, Molly had a pretty good idea of how to make Holtz feel good.

When she reached the top of Holtz's thigh, she flicked her tongue out at Holtz's clit. Holtz stuttered out a curse, fisting her hands in the sheets.

Molly gave her clit a slow, sensual lick before taking it into her mouth, and she simultaneously slid her index finger inside of Holtz, slowly and tentatively, unsure of whether Holtz would approve. Holtz approved with a breathy groan and a lifting of her hips and Molly curled her finger inside of Holtz, grinning wide when her former professor cursed again.

Molly flattened her tongue against Holtz's clit, gently massaging it as she massaged the spot inside of Holtz with her finger. Holtz began to moan continuously, her fingers raking into Molly's hair.

Molly slid her middle finger inside of Holtz as well, beginning to thrust both fingers in and out of the older woman slowly and steadily as she continued to stroke Holtz's clit with her tongue. The desperation in Holtz's moans grew, until she was practically crying with need. And then Molly began to gradually pick up the pace, desperation growing in her as well... to see, to hear, to feel, to taste the pinnacle of Holtz's pleasure.

Holtz reached it with a shuddering gasp, the fingers of one hand tightly coiled in Molly's thick dark hair, the other hand curled into the sheets, her hips bucking up towards Molly as she came, flooding Molly's senses and Molly lapped it up hungrily.

Molly drew herself away and laid down beside Holtz, admiring her in her post-orgasmic blissful state. Holtz turned towards her, a lusty grin on her face.

"You... have never done that before?"

"Never."

"You are a natural, my dear Molly," said Holtz, leaning in and capturing Molly's lips in a simmering kiss, sliding her tongue into Molly's mouth to taste her own arousal. When their lips parted Molly curled up against Holtz and Holtz's fingers drifted down over the back of Molly's shirt, wishing the fabric wasn't there but too exhausted to do anything about it.

"Holtz?"

"Mmm?"

"You could've just time traveled to the same day you left me... why didn't you?"

Holtz smirked. "Wanted to make you miss me."

"Well it worked. And fuck you."


	5. I Can Thrill You More Than Any Ghost

Holtz awoke gently, feeling the woman laying half on top of her shifting in sleep before making herself comfortable again and continuing to snore softly. Holtz lifted her eyelids and looked down at Molly with a smile.

Molly's wild dark hair was strewn over her face and Holtz's chest, where Molly's head had come to rest. The younger woman had removed her flannel shirt at some point in the night and was left with a tank top and jeans, and Holtz let her fingers drift along Molly's bare shoulder. Molly's shoes had also been kicked to the floor. Holtz meanwhile was Donald Ducking it with her upper half clothed and her lower half naked.

It occurred to Holtz that this was the first woman she had ever slept with.

She'd had sex with women, but she had never _slept_ with any of them. Never woken up with any of them.

She knew that this was a hell of a lot of firsts for Molly as well.

She'd liked Molly from the moment Molly had spoken to her, and her liking for Molly had only increased with time. Most people just dismissed Holtz as crazy, but Molly hadn't. The only other people that had not treated Holtz like a crazy person were her fellow Ghostbusters.

Her former fellow Ghostbusters. Pain seized her heart every time she thought of them. And especially of Erin...

Had she done the right thing by leaving them all? At the time she thought she was. Erin would be fine as long as Holtz wasn't there. It was Erin's feelings for Holtz that endangered them. And Holtz's feelings for Erin... what _were_ her feelings for Erin?

Erin was her dear friend. Erin was beautiful and brilliant and hilarious. Two years ago, Holtz had felt that maybe Erin was the one she was meant to be with.

She loved Erin. And where did that leave her with Molly?

What she felt for Molly... she wasn't sure if it was love. She really, really liked Molly. As a friend... as more than a friend... Molly, too, was beautiful, brilliant, hilarious. And kind of a punk as well, which Holtz appreciated and related to.

But this was her _student_. Well, granted it was her _former_ student but still she saw Molly as her student. Was she maybe taking advantage of her position as a teacher? Of this young woman who looked to her for instruction? Molly was young still, over a decade younger than Holtz, she had so many years and so many opportunities ahead of her... Holtz didn't want to stand in her way.

And so she resolved to return to New York and to Erin.

She didn't want to just ditch Molly though... the last thing she wanted was to hurt Molly in any way. But she could encourage Molly to go and explore what the world had to offer her, help Molly in whatever ways she was able to. Be the teacher that Molly deserved.

The need to pee suddenly hit Holtz. She tried pressing her legs together and willing it away, to no avail. So she very slowly and very carefully shifted out from under Molly, gently laying Molly down in the warmth that Holtz's body left behind.

She used the bathroom, brushed her teeth and washed her face, pulling her goggles off to readjust her hair.

And then she heard whispers outside of the bathroom window. She froze.

When the house's alarm system began to beep, signaling intruders approaching the house, she put her goggles back on, bolted out of the bathroom and shook Molly awake frantically.

Molly gave a mighty yawn and with tremendous effort opened her eyes to gaze up at Holtz. "S'wrong?" she asked tiredly.

"Molly, you need to get up, we have to go."

Holtz grabbed her jeans off the floor and hurriedly pulled them back on, as well as her boots and her belt. Meanwhile, Molly sat up and rubbing at her eyes she groped for her shirt and her shoes.

"What's the beeping noise?"

"That... is our cue to leave, baby," answered Holtz, pulling Molly off the bed and towards the window. She made sure that no one was outside of it and then she opened it, stepping outside and beckoning for Molly to follow her.

Quickly and quietly they made their way back to the DeLorean, stepping inside and shutting the doors as softly as they could. Holtz turned the ignition, turned on the flying circuits, the flux capacitor and time circuits flickered to life, and slowly Molly felt the wheels shift underneath her as the DeLorean became airborne.

As they lifted into the air Molly heard shouting erupt nearby, and she looked out the car window to see men dressed in black with ski masks running out of the house.

"Oh fuck," Molly whispered. "Are those..."

"The guys who want me dead, yeah," finished Holtz. "I don't know how but they found me."

Molly suddenly heard a loud bang and she realized with terror that the men were shooting at them. She ducked below the level of the window, her heart pounding and her body shaking. And then the DeLorean rocketed forward and out of sight of the house.

When they were a safe distance away Molly allowed herself to breathe, slumped against her seat and still shaking.

"Are you okay?" asked Holtz, her voice shaking just as much as Molly was.

"Yeah," sighed Molly, looking over at Holtz. "You?"

Holtz gave her a half-smile. "Fine and dandy, Miss Molly."

And then sparks began to fly off the car, and Holtz and Molly frowned at each other. They then looked at the time circuit controls and saw numbers flickering madly over the display.

"Holtz... what's-"

Molly's sentence was cut off by a sudden flash of light that overtook them.


	6. Dogs And Cats Living Together

The bright light subsided and left the DeLorean shrouded in darkness.

Holtz was still staring at the display on the time circuits. The date read October 11, 2040. Molly narrowed her eyes at this.

"Holtz... what just happened, and why does that say 2040?"

Holtz's gaze did not move. Her brows were knitted together and her mouth hung slightly open. Then she blinked, and she raised her eyes to Molly's.

"I... don't... know," said Holtz slowly.

They both looked out the window but neither could see anything. Holtz landed the DeLorean, and both women hesitantly stepped out of it.

"Where the fuck did Hill Valley go?"

They were standing in the middle of a vast crater. Molly looked up at the pitch black sky but couldn't see the moon or any stars at all. She turned to Holtz.

"Is this... the future?" she asked softly.

Holtz looked around, her lips pursed, and she bobbed her head slowly in affirmation. Her eyes met Molly's and Molly saw her fear reflected in them.

Suddenly there was a shriek off in the distance, a terrifying, inhuman shriek, and for the briefest moment both women stared at each other - and then both scrambled back into the car.

Holtz frantically input the date that they had departed from, fired up the time machine and they lifted off. Molly strapped herself in, bracing herself for the jump.

They flew forward, Molly gripped the handle above the door, squeezed her eyes shut, waited...

After several moments she opened her eyes again. She looked at the speedometer and saw the needle pointed at eighty-eight miles an hour. She looked outside and still saw nothing.

Then she looked over at Holtz and saw the same panic that she was feeling.

Holtz's fingers flew desperately around the interior of the DeLorean, flipping switches, pressing buttons, all to no avail. And then Holtz simply stared ahead as the car slowed to a stop in midair.

The expression on Holtz's face scared Molly more than she'd ever been scared in her life. It was still as a statue, frozen in fear.

"We have to land again," said Holtz faintly.

"What's... what's wrong with the time machine?"

"I don't know," replied Holtz. "That's what I need to figure out."

They landed once more and Holtz instructed Molly to sit in the driver's seat and be ready to take off if anything should happen. Neither of them had any idea what that 'anything' would be and neither of them had any desire to find out.

Molly waited inside the car as Holtz checked it out. Molly's heart pounded harder with each minute that passed, her eyes moving continuously through the shadows around them, praying that she wouldn't see anything out there. Especially whatever it was that had made that horrible noise...

Holtz finally stepped back into the car, sinking into the passenger's seat, her head tilted back and her eyes closed. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed a deep, calming sigh.

"We... are pretty well fucked."

Molly said nothing. Her heart sank into her stomach.

"The reactor took damage from the gunfire," continued Holtz. "The time circuits are still functional, but not reliable."

"You can't fix the reactor?"

"Not without the parts," replied Holtz softly.

They sat in silence for a few moments, and then hope suddenly sprang up within Holtz.

"New York."

Molly frowned at her. "What about it?"

"There is a car... in New York... that I built... with a nuclear reactor on it," said Holtz, heart beginning to pound excitedly in her chest.

"You built another time machine in New York?"

"No, it wasn't a time machine," answered Holtz, slowly turning towards Molly with a smile. "It was a Ghostbusting machine."

Molly's eyes narrowed for a moment, and then shot wide open. "You... _you were one of the Ghostbusters?"_

Holtz beamed with pride. "I was."

Molly's mouth hung open in awe. "I... I heard about you guys but I didn't know that you were actually _real_ , I thought it was just an urban legend or something... the whole Times Square ghost battle, that actually _happened?"_

"It did indeed," said Holtz with a grin, shooting a finger gun at Molly. "Took down most of those ghosts myself."

Molly laughed in amazement. "I can't believe... wait, then why did you guys break up, what happened to the other Ghostbusters?"

The grin faded from Holtz's face. Her gaze drifted out into the darkness in front of them. "They're still there," said Holtz quietly. "I left them."

"Why did you leave them?"

Holtz pressed her lips together, shaking her head gently. She didn't know how to answer that question.

Molly's hand slid into hers and Holtz's eyes met Molly's again. Molly gave her a sad, sweet smile. "It was because of your girlfriend, wasn't it. What happened to her." Holtz nodded, returning the sad smile.

Then suddenly they heard a scratching sound, something scraping against the passenger side of the car. Holtz and Molly stared fearfully out of the passenger side window.

Sinister laughter began to fill the air and both women looked around to see where it was coming from but could see nothing.

Then Molly caught movement out of the corner of her eye and she followed it; a man stood in front of the car, glowing eerily in the dark, one arm missing and grinning an evil grin, laughing a laugh that chilled Molly to the bone.

Holtz followed Molly's gaze. "T3," she whispered.

Molly watched her reach into a pouch on her belt and take out a small metal cylinder with a button on top of it. Then Holtz started rolling down the passenger window and Molly opened her mouth to protest but Holtz put her hand over Molly's mouth.

"This is a proton grenade," whispered Holtz, her eyes still on the man in front of them. "And that is a Class Three Apparition. A ghost. This grenade will neutralize it. I'm going to throw it... and then you're going to get us the hell out of here, 'kay?"

Molly nodded with Holtz's hand still over her mouth, and Holtz's hand fell away. Molly started the car and turned on the flying circuits, waiting for Holtz's cue... and then Holtz flung the grenade out the window towards the ghost and shouted, " _GO!"_

Molly lifted them into the air and shot forward, whiteknuckling the steering wheel when she heard the ghost scream behind them and then a powerful explosion which supplanted the screaming.

Holtz laughed and clapped. " _Man_ it's been a while since I've done that," she exclaimed. "I missed it."

Molly glanced sideways at her, smiling despite the fear that was still rattling her. "I can't believe you were actually a Ghostbuster."

"Believe it, babe," said Holtz with a wink. She flipped the time circuits off, sighing. "Best just to disable the time travel for now until I can get it working properly."

"So which way is New York? I can't really see anything around us."

"There's a compass on the dash," said Holtz, pointing it out. "Just head east for now and hopefully we'll see some landmarks or something that can guide us."

Holtz settled back into her seat, stealing a glance over at Molly before looking out the window to scan the landscape for any distinguishing features. 2040... Hill Valley was a crater... she hoped New York City was still around. And that their president was not a plant. Or worse, a casino owner with hair made of piss-colored cotton candy.


	7. One Last Caress

It didn't take Holtz and Molly very long to figure out that the future held a plethora of unpleasant surprises for humanity... if finding Hill Valley a ghost-infested crater didn't hit that home to begin with.

The rest of the country seemed to be intact but was equally ghost-infested. The sun was perpetually blocked by heavy dark clouds. The living people that were still around were no more pleasant than the ghosts; the apocalypse had obviously not been good to them. Whatever the hell the apocalypse had been. Holtz and Molly quickly learned to keep their distance from both the dead and the living.

That uneasiness that Holtz had begun to feel when she'd saved Erin grew and grew.

She started drumming on the dash of the DeLorean as Molly flew it.

" _I am a passenger... and I ride and I ride..._ "

"How can you be singing right now?" asked Molly concernedly.

"Right now seems like a pretty good time for singing," replied Holtz, still drumming and bobbing her head.

"Doesn't seem like it to me."

"I've been through some pretty bad times," said Holtz. "This I would say is among those bad times but definitely not the worst. The company's not too bad." She winked at Molly, delighted in the little smile Molly gave her, and immediately regretted the wink. The way Molly made her feel... was a way she wasn't sure she should be feeling.

"What were the worse times you've been through?"

The levity left Holtz. She leaned back and sighed. "You don't wanna hear about it."

"Yes I do," protested Molly. Her hand found Holtz's again and squeezed it softly. "Well... not if it hurts you to talk about it... but I want to know all that I can about you, Holtz."

Holtz laughed darkly, but she squeezed Molly's hand back, stroking her thumb across it. "Believe me, you don't." The feeling of Molly's hand in hers though... she felt her resolve crumbling.

Usually she just made shit up when people asked about her past, because that was easier than talking about the things she had lived through. People liked the goofy exterior she projected. She didn't want to spoil that for them.

But she didn't want to lie to Molly...

"Tell me about you being a Ghostbuster," said Molly with a smile. "Which, I still can't believe you didn't tell me about that before, Holtz, for fuck's sake, what else are you hiding from me? Are you Batman too? Do you have grappling hooks and shit on that belt?"

Holtz laughed and told the tale of how she became a Ghostbuster and how she eventually came to leave the Ghostbusters.

It got a little awkward when it came to the subject of Erin... Holtz kind of danced around the discussion of how she felt for Erin.

Molly listened to Holtz try not to say how much she loved Erin, looked down at her hand still in Holtz's, and withdrew it sadly. But Holtz took it back; Molly looked up into Holtz's eyes, saw pain there and also a silent plea. And she let Holtz take her hand with an affectionate smile, which Holtz returned.

Holtz looked back out the window and started singing again.

" _All of it was made for you and me, it just belongs to you and me, so let's take a ride and see what's mine..._ "

"What are you singing?" asked Molly.

"Iggy Pop," said Holtz. "Usually helpful in difficult times such as these."

Molly smiled. "Do you like the Misfits?"

Holtz threw her head back. " _I GOT SOMETHING TO SAY_ ," she screamed, " _I KILLED A BABY TODAY!"_

Molly laughed and joined in singing, banging her head and backing Holtz up on air guitar as Holtz drummed on the dash, flying through post-apocalyptic America towards a New York that both women hoped was still there... flying towards both the future and the past.


	8. Land's End

New York was still there. But it wasn't the New York that Holtz remembered.

Most of it had been reduced to rubble. The firehouse was included in that.

And Times Square seemed to be the epicenter of the ghost infestation that had spread across the country. The uneasiness in Holtz turned to full-blown dread.

Holtz landed the DeLorean on the roof of the Chinese restaurant the Ghostbusters had once used for their headquarters, unsure of where else to go. Unsure of what to do, or what could be done to remedy her and Molly's situation.

And she thought of Erin... and started to cry, the same burning tears she had shed when she had left New York. She lifted shaking hands to her face, trying desperately to contain the emotion.

"I... I hurt her." The words welled up like blood from a wound. "I left her... I hurt her... I did this."

"Holtz..." Molly's arms slid around Holtz's shoulders, pulling her into a fierce hug. "You didn't do this," Molly whispered.

"You don't know that," said Holtz roughly, pulling away from Molly's embrace, pulling her goggles off and shoving her hand into her hair. "You don't _know_."

She heard Molly sniff, holding back her tears. Molly said nothing but Holtz could feel the younger woman's pain.

The two women sat there for several minutes, Holtz turned away from Molly and hunched over with her hand covering her face as tears flowed over it. Molly wanted so badly to comfort her former professor, but Holtz was right... she knew nothing about this pain Holtz was feeling and she didn't know how to take it away.

Then suddenly both of them heard music. Faint, but audible... coming from the Chinese restaurant below them.

Holtz lifted her head, sniffed back her tears, eyes narrowed and ears trained on the sound.

Then Holtz's eyes widened and a smile broke over her face. She leapt out of the DeLorean, Molly calling out after her in confusion before following her out of the car.

The two women descended the stairs from the roof, the sounds of Siouxsie and the Banshees growing louder.

They turned a corner and Holtz's nose met the barrel of a proton gun.

"Back up, sweetheart," warned the person who wielded the weapon. Holtz, however, stood absolutely still, not backing up an inch. Excitement lit up her face.

"Abby?"

The chubby, gray-haired woman holding the proton gun narrowed her eyes behind her glasses. "How do you know my name," she asked, gun still pointed steadily at Holtz.

Holtz swallowed. "Abby... it's me... Holtzmann."

"I don't know anyone named Holtzmann," said Abby, eyes narrowing further, grip tightening on her weapon. "Now _back up_ before I give you a face full of laser."

Holtz's eyes flicked down onto the gun. "Uh... I don't think you will."

"You wanna _try_ me? You seriously... wanna..." Abby trailed off as the gun made a series of pitiful noises before completely losing power. Abby sighed. "Dammit."

"I can fix that for you," offered Holtz.

Abby let the gun clatter to the floor. "What the hell do you two want from me? How did you know my name? And how did you get onto the roof? And... you know what, screw it, I don't even wanna know, just... take whatever you came here for and leave me alone," muttered Abby, dropping her proton pack and walking across the room to one of the restaurant's booths, slumping down into it.

Molly watched all of this in confusion, also wondering how it was that Holtz knew this woman's name. She looked around at a restaurant that seemed to have been converted into a laboratory and living space, not unlike Holtz's house... Molly spotted some technology that looked very similar to Holtz's. 

Holtz walked over to the stereo and turned it off before walking over to where Abby sat. She sat down across from Abby. "Banshees," she said with a grin.

Abby frowned. "What about them?"

"I heard them," answered Holtz. "From the roof. And I remembered... I remembered working with you at Higgins and you always playing the Banshees."

Abby's face screwed up in utter confusion. " _How_ did you know that I worked at Higgins? I never worked with you there... I never worked with anyone there... who the hell are you?"

Holtz's face fell. "You... you really don't remember me? Jillian Holtzmann? Nuclear physicist? Colleague? Ghostbuster?"

"I don't know any Jillian Holtzmann, nor do I know any Ghostbusters."

"What do you mean?" asked Holtz, frowning as well now. "You _are_ a Ghostbuster!"

Abby shook her head. "I... do _not_ know what you're talking about, I'm sorry."

Molly came over to them. "She's one of the Ghostbusters?" she asked Holtz, to which Holtz responded with a worried nod. 

"Okay, I don't know what the hell the Ghostbusters are or what the hell's wrong with you two, but you're weirding me out, and please leave," said Abby, pointing to the door exasperatedly.

"Abby... what happened here?" Holtz gazed at the older woman in concern. "Where are all the ghosts coming from?" She had a feeling she already knew what had happened...

"Uh... what do you mean, what happened? Where exactly are you guys from?" asked Abby.

"We're from the past," said Molly. "From when New York wasn't a ruin and there weren't ghosts everywhere."

Holtz squinted uncertainly up at the younger woman. "Molly..."

"There's a time machine on your roof," Molly added.

" _Molly_."

"My name's Molly by the way," said the younger woman, grinning at Abby. "It's awesome to meet you. _Huge_ fan of your guys' work."

"Is this, like, supposed to be making me feel _less_ weirded out?" Abby asked Holtz. "Because it's not working."

"Just tell me something, Abby, did a man named Rowan have anything to do with all these ghosts wandering around?"

Abby stared hard at Holtz... and she nodded.

"He broke the barrier, didn't he."

"Yeah," said Abby softly. "Twenty years ago. I've been working on a weapon to fight the ghosts and possibly a way to close the portal, but..." Abby gestured towards the proton gun on the floor with a sigh. "It's not going too well so far."

Holtz stared at the proton gun. Molly could see the wheels turning in her head. And she was also beginning to realize something...

"There are no Ghostbusters," said Molly faintly.

"Again, I don't know what the hell that is."

"It's... the group that you and I and two other women formed... to fight ghosts," Holtz answered Abby, standing and walking over to the proton gun and then crouching over it, running her fingers over the metal. "You and me... and Patty... and Erin."

Only that had never happened... because Erin had never met Abby. Because Erin had never met the ghost as a child. Because of Holtz.


	9. The Ghost In You, She Don't Fade

Holtz busied herself with fixing Abby's proton pack, trying as hard as she could to distract herself from the despair that she felt. At least this was something that she could fix...

Molly watched her from the booth in which she and Abby sat.

"So... are you two seriously from the past," asked Abby, "because you definitely don't seem like all the other people I've run into in the last twenty years. Time travelers or aliens. Which is it?"

"Well, for me it's time traveler, and I can't exactly speak for her," said Molly, pointing her thumb at Holtz. "She's either an alien or a mad genius the likes of which the world has never seen."

Holtz paused in her welding long enough to let out a maniacal cackle and ignite her blowtorch menacingly as she did so. Molly gestured at this display for emphasis. Abby nodded in understanding.

"You know what I don't understand, Holtz," began Molly, frowning at her former professor, "is how _you_ never got to meet Abby here, since your meeting and working with Abby had nothing to do with Erin... I get how Abby and Erin failed to meet each other in this timeline, but what about you?"

Holtz didn't look up from her work. "They wrote a book together," she said quietly. "And it was that book that inspired me to leave Hill Valley and find Abby."

"I wrote a book? That got published? Seriously?"

Holtz smiled up at Abby. "Yep. About ghosts and the barrier that protects our world... well, protected our world. It was an _awesome_ book."

Abby smiled wistfully. "Wish that was the world I lived in... not this crappy one."

"Don't worry, Abs," said Holtz, determinedly returning her attention to Abby's proton pack. "I am going to fix this for you... and then I'm going to fix the time machine up there... and I'm going to make all of this right." Emotion threatened to overtake Holtz's voice as she spoke the last few words.

Molly felt tears threatening her own eyes. She stood from the booth, walked over to Holtz, took the blowtorch from Holtz's hand and stared hard into Holtz's eyes, which were obscured by her goggles.

"You didn't do this on purpose, Holtz," she said, voice impassioned. She took Holtz's hands in hers, squeezing them. "You didn't know this would happen... you were only trying to help her. It is _not_ your fault."

Holtz stared back at her and beneath the goggles Molly could see tears springing from the corners of Holtz's eyes. Holtz looked down at their joined hands, biting down hard on her lip.

"I... I did this... to you too." Holtz's voice shook violently. Her eyes closed. "I stranded you here. Put you in danger. You... you almost got shot because of me..."

Molly ripped Holtz's goggles off and pulled her into a powerful kiss, saying with that kiss what she could not put into words. Holtz hesitated before kissing her back, pulling away with a slight sob, tears streaming down both of their faces.

"Hey, um... sorry to, you know, break this up, because I really love watching people make out in front of me, especially when they cry while they do it... but Holtz, you were saying that you needed parts to fix a nuclear reactor on the time machine, right?"

Holtz and Molly looked over at Abby questioningly. "Yeah," said Holtz, clearing her throat and wiping at her eyes. "Yeah, I do. Why, do you have parts that I could use?"

"Nope. But I think I know a woman who does," said Abby with a grin. "Or at least she'll know where you can get 'em. And oddly enough she has the same name as one of the other people you said were also Ghostbusters." Holtz's heart began pounding on her ribcage.

Once Holtz had finished fixing Abby's proton pack, and once they had armed themselves with proton grenades, they set off to find the woman whom Abby had described as "a woman who knows things." They followed Abby's directions, which led them into the city's vacated subway tunnels, Holtz's heart pounding harder and harder as they went...

Eventually they came to a barricaded-off platform, and again Molly spied some technology that looked highly familiar. Holtz suddenly threw an arm out in front of Molly, her gaze pointed at the ground in front of the younger woman. Molly looked down and saw what Holtz was staring at: a device that looked like a cross between a bear trap and a bomb.

"What the _fuck_ yall doin' in my tunnel?" shouted a voice from behind the barricade.

A wide grin broke over Holtz's face. "Patty, baby, is that you?"

"Who the fuck are you and how do you know me?"

"Abby told us you could maybe help us out?"

"Pfff." There was a series of mechanical clicks and a door opened in the barricade, revealing a tall woman with spiked-out gray-streaked hair and a frown. "That bitch owes me library books, I _know_ she got 'em and I ain't playin' no more."

Holtz held back her joy at seeing Patty again, closing her lips on a smile. "She, um... she didn't say anything about that... but she said you might know where we can get parts for a nuclear reactor?"

Patty eyed her suspiciously, then eyed Molly suspiciously. Molly offered her a hopeful smile, and Patty smiled back. "Aight, yall get inside then," she said, ushering the two younger women in from the subway tunnel.

Holtz and Molly looked around at the subway platform that Patty had transformed into a fortress. Holtz whistled her appreciation. "Not bad, Pattycakes."

Patty squinted at Holtz and shook her head. "So yall know Abby, huh."

"Yep," answered Holtz, still looking around her. "I don't understand why she's not down here with you though, this is way cooler than the restaurant."

"Woman loves her Chinese food," muttered Patty, shaking her head once more. "And she also said something about some friendly ghost living there that she's trying to make contact with that could maybe help her with the technology she's working on, but in my experience ain't no Caspers around here that are gonna help us out. She just in it for the soup."

"Sounds worthwhile to me," Molly declared. "I mean what's the use of living if you can't have soup?"

Patty laughed loudly. "She said the exact same thing to me."

Holtz saw something on the wall and moved towards it, eyes narrowed. Pinned to the wall was an old newspaper article with a picture of a massive crater and the headline 'Hill Valley Nuclear Disaster.' The rest of the article was illegible. Holtz stepped away from the wall, staring blankly at the article's image.

"Patty... do you know what happened to Hill Valley?"

"Yall don't know about that? Oh man, it was _horrible_ ," said Patty mournfully. "There was somebody there, some scientist or something, who was trying to reverse the portal and suck all the ghosts back into the spirit world, but the experiment backfired and blew up the whole city. Man... such a tragedy..."

Holtz shut her eyes. She drew in a deep, slow breath, and released it just as slowly. She had a guess as to who the scientist from Hill Valley was.

"So... um... you can help us get some nuclear reactor parts?" asked Holtz, her voice shaking slightly.

"Yeah I know someone who could hook you up," replied Patty. She gave them directions to a scientist who would be able to provide them with what they needed, and with a heartfelt thank you and a promise to remind Abby about the books she owed Patty, they left Patty and set off through the subway tunnels once more.

As they walked, Holtz's hand slid into Molly's, surprising the younger woman. She looked at Holtz apprehensively, unsure of what to say... she too had a guess as to who had blown up Hill Valley.

"I'm so sorry for dragging you into this, Molly," said Holtz softly, gazing at her former student.

"I'm not," said Molly in reply, tears surging in her eyes, squeezing Holtz's hand in hers and giving her former professor a warm smile. There was so much more that she wanted to say, but she didn't know quite how to say it. Holtz looked down at their hands, smiled and squeezed back.

When Holtz realized exactly what it was they were heading towards, her heart began to pound again.

They used a service tunnel that led into some sort of boiler room, and from there continued to follow Patty's directions until they came to the basement of the science department of Columbia University.

"Um," came a confused Australian accent from the hall before them, "what are you doing down here?"

"No... way... is that... the _Kevinator?"_ asked Holtz with glee.

"What? Where?" answered the muscular blond man in front of them, whipping around to look behind him.

"I was talking about you, sweetpea," said Holtz, approaching him and patting him sympathetically on the shoulder.

"That's not my name," said Kevin.

"I know, honey, I know."

"You know this guy?" asked Molly, frowning at Kevin.

"Yeah he was the Ghostbusters' receptionist."

"Ohhh, _that's_ where I know you from!" said Kevin with a laugh of comprehension. Molly's frown deepened.

"I thought... alternate timeline...?"

"Yeah it's still a different timeline, he's just, shall we say, not the brightest bulb in the box."

"My name's Kevin," said the man, confused again. Holtz shot him a wink and a finger gun.

"Kevin, is there a scientist here?"

"Oh yeah, this way," said Kevin, leading them down the hall.

Holtz's heart started to pound out of control, which did not go unnoticed by Molly. She looked over the older woman next to her who had begun to shake visibly. "Holtz... is everything okay?"

Holtz drew in a shaky breath. "Yep, all good."

Molly only frowned. "You getting all flustered by this guy? Thought you were full lez."

Holtz laughed a little too loudly. "Trust me, girl, I'm as lez as they get, it's just that-"

And then Holtz stopped dead in her tracks, heart in her throat.

Erin stood before her.


	10. Inside You The Time Moves

Erin looked almost exactly the same as she had when Holtz had last seen her. Shoulder-length auburn hair and bangs, warm blue-gray-green eyes, now with wrinkles gathered around them from age and from laughter. She wore glasses on a string around her neck, a long lab coat over a flowy blue blouse, sleek black slacks and black heels.

It took a long while for Holtz to realize she was staring. She faintly heard Molly clearing her throat next to her. She saw Erin staring blankly at her. She realized Erin had no idea who she was.

The pain that that realization inflicted was greater than any pain Holtz had ever known. She felt tears surge into her eyes, bit her lip to hold back a sob, bit down so hard she tasted blood.

"Holtz, what's wrong?" asked Molly, alarmed.

Holtz sniffed and tossed her head back, wiping at her eyes. She shook her head. "Nothing... nothing's wrong."

"Um... can I... help you two?" asked Erin awkwardly.

Molly explained to Erin what they had come for and Erin smiled at the mention of Patty's name. She motioned for Holtz and Molly to follow her and they did.

Holtz's eyes wandered over Erin's form, relearning what she looked like, and Holtz couldn't help smiling at the older woman. Erin caught her staring and after a moment, she smiled back.

Molly looked between them. And she suddenly understood who this woman was. Who she was to Holtz.

Molly felt her heart sinking, felt resentment rising, and she hated herself for it.

Holtz loved this woman. Was _in love_ with this woman.

Now was Molly's turn to grow quiet as Holtz and Erin talked... as Holtz flirted with Erin. Molly had felt jealousy before but never as strong as this. It tore her heart into shreds.

Before she knew what she was doing she was walking away from them. She didn't even hear Holtz calling after her... she stopped when she felt Holtz's hand on her arm. She didn't look up at Holtz.

"Molly?" said Holtz worriedly. "Where are you going?"

"I'm just... gonna wait out here," replied Molly, trying to keep the sadness out of her voice. "Let you and Erin talk." Her eyes now raised to meet her former professor's. She nodded her head back in Erin's direction. "Go on, go back in there, I'm fine."

Holtz only gazed back at her. This was not how she wanted things to be. She did not want Molly to be upset.

She took Molly's hand in hers. Molly tensed but didn't pull her hand away.

"Molly..."

"Just _go_ , Doc," said Molly, taking back her hand and turning away from the older woman.

Holtz walked around her so that they were facing each other again. Molly's eyes were determinedly fixed to the ground. Holtz stood there, studying the younger woman for several moments. And then she reached into a pocket in the lining of her leather jacket.

She pulled out and unfolded the note that Molly had given her when Holtz had left her.

 _I love you_ , the note read.

Holtz pursed her lips. She raised her eyes to Molly's, who gazed back at her. Holtz showed her the note. "Did you really mean this," asked Holtz quietly.

Tears shone in Molly's eyes. Trying desperately not to cry, she nodded, wishing the answer had been no.

Holtz looked back down at the words on the piece of paper. She did love Erin. She knew that. She would _always_ love Erin, no matter how far apart they were, in distance or in time.

But she was beginning to realize that she was not _in_ love with Erin. She had been. For years. Had cried for Erin... had longed for her... for years. She'd thought she would never love another person as much as she loved Erin.

And then this student of hers came along.

Holtz looked at Molly now and realized that she could not be without the younger woman.

She stepped closer to Molly, cupping her face with one hand, gently stroking her cheek with a thumb. She leaned in close, touching her nose to Molly's.

"I love you too," Holtz whispered, joining her lips with Molly's in a soft yet powerful kiss.


	11. Every Day Is Halloween

They got the parts they needed for the reactor and bid Erin farewell. Holtz took Erin's hand and kissed it lovingly, smiling at the blush that crept over Erin's face. Erin smiled warmly back at her, and Holtz left Erin once again... her heart much lighter this time.

She and Molly returned to the Chinese restaurant and set about repairing the time machine, while Abby told them about the ghost of the delivery boy named Benny whom she was trying to contact. She swore it wasn't just about soup. Neither Holtz nor Molly quite believed her.

When they'd finished, they bid Abby farewell, Holtz pulling her into a fierce hug.

"There's a chick at Columbia you need to meet," said Holtz with a smile. "Her name is Erin Gilbert, she's a genius, and you two need each other. And you also need to give Patty her books."

Abby scoffed but waved them off with a smile, watching from the roof as the DeLorean shot into the sky and disappeared with a series of sparks followed by a loud bang.

The DeLorean landed in 1985 Michigan once more.

"So what do we do now?" asked Molly.

"Now we go hunt my ass down and stop me from destroying the world," answered Holtz.

"Alright, well, you should know where to find yourself so lead the way, Doc."

Holtz shook her head. "I think you should go by yourself."

Molly frowned, and then the frown dissolved with understanding. "Ohhh yeah the whole time paradox thing, you don't wanna meet yourself because that could fuck up the space-time continuum, right?"

"Nah, it's just if there's anyone who can persuade me to do anything, it's you, babe," said Holtz with a playful grin. "And also because of the paradox thing."

Molly snorted a laugh and briefly entertained the idea of dragging Holtz along with her to meet the other Holtz, just to be in the presence of two Holtzes... Molly shivered with pleasure at the thought.

She looked over at Holtz and saw the older woman gazing out of the window, and she followed Holtz's gaze to the children walking around outside dressed up for Halloween.

"I always loved Halloween the most out of all the holidays," murmured Holtz. "The one night of the year where I didn't feel like I was the only weirdo out there."

Molly smiled. "You're definitely not." She pulled Holtz's hand up to her mouth and kissed it. Holtz held her other hand up to her forehead and did an impression of a lady swooning, then laughed and pulled Molly towards her for a kiss.

Holtz told Molly where she would find Holtz's past self, and with one more kiss, Molly left present Holtz to go find past Holtz.

She wasn't quite sure how Holtz would react to seeing her in 1985 but she figured she'd cross that bridge when she came to it.

Holtz's eyes flew open wide and she staggered several steps backward. "What... why... _how_ ," was all Holtz could manage to say.

"I came back here to stop you from doing this," replied Molly, holding her hands up in front of her in a way that she hoped communicated that she came in peace. Holtz stared bewildered at her hands. "If you change the past here, the Ghostbusters won't get together and the world will end. I just came back from the end of the world and trust me, you don't want that to happen."

Holtz's eyes narrowed. "You... came here by yourself?"

"No, you're sitting back there in the DeLorean, I just came to _you_ by myself because of time paradoxes and shit. You know how that goes."

Holtz looked wide-eyed in the direction that Molly had come from, and then after a moment looked back at Molly, studying her closely. "Does this _really_ bring about the end of the world, me rescuing Erin?" she asked, softly and sadly.

Molly nodded just as softly and sadly.

Holtz's eyes narrowed again. "I _can't_ let this happen to her," insisted Holtz. "I built a _time machine_ for this. I _have_ to save her."

Molly chewed on her lip, brow furrowed. She didn't know what to say... how to tell Holtz to _not_ save the woman that she loved. She thought hard, and after a moment her eyes lit up with sudden clarity.

"You can still save her," said Molly as a smile spread over her face. "You can still save her _and_ save the world!" Holtz raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her.

"You can stop her from trashing the old lady's house... but tell her to find Abby and fight ghosts. And write a book with Abby that will get you to come to New York and work with them."

"So... I tell a little eight-year-old girl to not destroy an old woman's house because the old woman will eat her soul if she does, and I tell her to instead befriend another little girl who she hasn't met yet, form a ghostbusting group with said girl and write a book so that the world doesn't end?"

Molly frowned.

Holtz clapped and grinned. "Sounds like a plan to me," she exclaimed.

"That will either go over very well... or very badly," murmured Molly, images in her head of little eight-year-old Erin screaming in terror and running away from Holtz.

"It'll be fine," assured Holtz with a wink. "I'm great with kids. I basically am one."

Molly smiled. "Well, I'll let you get to it." She gave Holtz a little two-fingered salute. "Seeya in the future, Doc."

"Catch ya later, Superfly."

Molly laughed and danced away back towards the DeLorean.

She came back to the DeLorean to find Holtz blasting Ministry with her hand out the window drumming on the side of the car. Molly leaned against the driver's side, grinning down at Holtz.

"You're frightening the children."

"I'm _educating_ them," Holtz responded, grinning back.

Molly walked around to the passenger side, but as she reached out for the door handle the car pulled forward.

She reached out again and the car pulled forward again.

"Holtz."

"What's the hold up? Get in already," said Holtz, mischief glinting in her eyes.

Molly glared. She waited a moment, then reached for the handle again.

The car continued forward.

"Holtz, I'm gonna beat your ass."

"That sounds like fun," said Holtz, grinning evilly.

And then a spark shot off of the DeLorean, shocking Molly and making her jump back. Both women looked worriedly at each other.

"Holtz?"

Then more sparks began to fly off the car, and Molly's eyes shut against the blinding light before her.

Before either woman could say anything more, the DeLorean had vanished with a loud crack.

Molly stared at the empty space the DeLorean had been occupying a moment before. And then she threw her head back with a groan.

"Very fucking funny, Doc," she muttered.

But although she wanted to believe it was just a prank, a voice inside her fearfully reminded her that the time machine needed to be traveling at eighty-eight miles per hour to make the jump through time. She tried as hard as she could to ignore this voice.

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

Molly turned to see a woman walking towards her. The woman wore a courier's uniform, carried an envelope in her hand, and looked at Molly with an expression of uncertainty and amazement.

"Is... is your name Molly McFly?"

Molly narrowed her eyes, uncertainty filling her as well. "Um... yes, but... how do you..."

The woman held out the envelope in her hand. "I'm with Western Union. We've had this envelope in our office for sixty years... there were instructions attached to deliver the envelope to a woman named Molly McFly, a woman who matches your description, in this exact spot, at this exact moment."

Molly only stared at the woman for a long moment. And then she took the envelope and began to open it, her hands shaking.

She pulled out a letter that was frail and yellowed with age, and began to read.

_My Dear Miss Molly,_

_Please don't worry. I know what you just saw is freaking you out, and I'm sure this letter is freaking you out even more._

_The time circuits malfunctioned and sent me back to 1925. I tried to repair the time machine but I couldn't... the bullets did way more damage than I'd thought._

_I'm so sorry to have left you like that. But please don't worry about me, I've been living in Chicago and working as a professor for the past several months, and everything is fine. No need to worry about me. And no need to rescue me._

_My past self should be able to take you home. I know she'll take good care of you. She's me, after all._

_I love you so, so, so much._

_Also, I asked Western Union to send the hottest chick they had working for them to deliver this letter, so make sure to check out her ass for me._

_Yours,_

_The Irrepressible Lesbian Jillian Holtzmann, expert in all things female, CAN'T STOP WON'T STOP, PhD_

Molly didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. Her bottom lip trembled.

"Ma'am? Are you okay?"

Molly shook her head.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Molly looked up at the delivery woman determinedly.

"There's only one woman who can help me."

 

TO BE CONTINUED...

 

A/N: Happy Halloween everybody, and thank you for reading! :)


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